an online portfolio of the creative works of Emily Marsden

My Brother, Ethan

Ethan – 2011, age 8

Ethan has aspergers syndrome. When you first meet Ethan, his aspergers isn’t noticeable but there’s something about him that’s just not quite right. See, Ethan sees the world from a different angle. He sees things in a way that we can not. His innocent outlook on life is one that most aren’t familiar with. He’s smart and outgoing and he’s so eager to help. It’s almost a blessing in disguise. But not quite. From the time Ethan was in pre-school, he was secluded by his peers. It’s hard to understand because Ethan is so outgoing and friendly. Why would anyone NOT want to be his friend? Once, when Ethan was attending a private school, a classmate of his was having a birthday party. She invited everyone in the class. Except Ethan. That was the first time that I ever really realized how different my little brother was.

People make fun of kids with aspergers. They make fun of them without even realizing that they have a brain defect. That something really is wrong with them and that they’re not just weird. Millions of kids are suffering from this harrassment and the saddest part of it is, is that they can’t help who they are. They know they’re different but they can’t change it. As humans, we naturally have the desire to bring people down to make ourselves feel higher, whether we realize that we’re doing it or not. When you make fun of someone or talk badly about them, do you ever really think that they might have a disorder? Or that they might have a bad home life? Or maybe they have aspergers syndrome, like my brother Ethan. Words hurt. Actions can hurt more.